Photo of the Week: Increasing Women's Economic Participation in the Americas

Our "Photo of the Week" shows Deputy Secretary of State William Burns and Colombian Vice Foreign Minister Patti Londono signing a memorandum of understanding on the Small Business Network of the Americas in Cali, Colombia, October 23, 2012.

Deputy Secretary Burns and Assistant Secretary of State for Western Hemisphere Affairs Roberta Jacobsontraveled to Cali for the fifth Pathways to Prosperity in the Americas ministerial. The government of Colombia hosted the event, attended by high-level government officials, policy makers, business leaders, academics, and representatives from international organizations throughout the Americas, who shared best practices to promote inclusive economic growth and prosperity in the hemisphere.

While in Colombia, Deputy Secretary Burns and Assistant Secretary Jacobson also visited the Women's Entrepreneurship in the Americas (WEAmericas) entrepreneurial fair in Cali on October 23. The WEAmericas initiative leverages public-private partnerships to increase women's economic participation and address three barriers women confront in starting and growing small and medium enterprises: access to training and networks, access to markets, and access to finance.

Next week, Assistant Secretary Jacobson will discuss the hemispheric agenda of democracy, prosperity, and social inclusion during a "Conversations With America" webcast with Diana Villiers Negroponte, Senior Fellow for the Latin America Initiative at the Brookings Institution, and Michael Shifter, President of the Inter-American Dialogue. Don't forget to submit your questions now to join the discussion.